A man purportedly from Nigeria wishes to hire my services as a web developer. Although originally introducing himself as a student, he later said that he is an entertainer who is "very popular [in Nigeria]", and is therefore "rich", which is why he was able to pay for my services even though the website was not for a business.

While speaking with someone else who knows a bit about internet scams, they mentioned that he can not send a Western Union transfer from Nigeria and not to give out bank details for fear of identity theft. A cheque of course is always risky if the person is not particularly trusted, and there is the possibility of them wanting "change".

Either way, the Nigerian said that he will send cash via a courier. He says he will use UPS, and I called them and they said that I can have an item held at their office for personal collection (which means I can give the Nigerian a fake address or a random post office address).

My question: am I risking anything here? Is it possible that the package, if sent at all, will be full of flesh-eating scorpions or something else that would endanger my physical or fiscal health? I will not willfully send him any money, and he is aware of my distrust, but I don't know if there is some other way he could scam me.

Welcome to Scampatrol forum. It's nice to hear of someone being careful! You said that the man who contacted you has changed his story. This is usually a bad sign. I'm assuming he sent you an email. Would it be possible for you to show us the letter he sent to you - with your own personal details removed, of course.

Your friend is correct that Western Union does not allow transfers *out* of Nigeria, preferring to funnel millions of dollars *into* that country. But that's a rant for another day. It's also true that giving out bank details may lead to identity theft. With so many fake cheques being printed every day - accepting one is a huge risk.

The key to doing business with such a person is that he must send you cash up front. If he wants to pay later he may never send you anything.
Any package he sends is unlikely to pose any physical danger. The likely options are that the package will contain a fake cheque or (less commonly) counterfeit money. Either way you would want to get what he sends you checked out by someone before you try to cash it / spend it!
Using a fake address as you described is the best option.

If I were you I would insist on cash up front, protect my identity and refuse to accept any fees or charges relating to my dealings with him.
I hope this is helpful to you.

Thanks, frodo. It was via instant messenger over a number of hours, so unfortunately it's not really possible for me to include the actual conversation. It will be cash up front for any fees I have to pay out personally (hosting and domain registration, a year in advance) and half my service fee up front to know that he's genuine. This is the way I do business regardless of where they are.

He didn't particularly change his story, in that they're not mutually exclusive; it just seems peculiar.

Quote:

[10:35:05 PM] <him>: me i am still a student and i am studing engineering and i am looking for a business opportunity to advance my income . u know..

*later*

[11:35:56 PM] <him>: I WILL SEND U THE MONEY THROUH COURRIER SERVICE
[11:36:09 PM] <him>: IN CASH usd $
[11:36:37 PM] Ballig: if you're going to send it as cash, I'd prefer it in AUD
[11:37:05 PM] <him>: OK
[11:37:22 PM] <him>: YOUR CHIOCE
[11:37:33 PM] Ballig: in AUD it is $580
[11:38:01 PM] <him>: K
[11:38:06 PM] Ballig: I thought you were just a student?
[11:38:10 PM] Ballig: how are you going to come across money like this
[11:38:13 PM] <him>: DO U WANT TO SEE MY PIC
[11:38:20 PM] Ballig: that doesn't seem necessary
[11:38:47 PM] <him>: I AM A MUSICAIN IN NIGERIA
[11:38:54 PM] <him>: AN ENTERTAINER
[11:38:59 PM] <him>: I AM PUPULAR HERE
[11:39:26 PM] <him>: LIKE 50 CENT AND THE EMINEM AND OTHER BIG US SHOOTS
[11:39:39 PM] Ballig: I see
[11:39:48 PM] <him>: I AM RICH
[11:40:17 PM] <him>: AM NAME IS CHRISTOHER
[11:41:22 PM] <him>: U KNOWW... WHY I AM GIVINNG THIS MY WEBSITE MAKING TO AN OUTSIDER FROM THE WESTERN WORLD IS BECOS I WANT THE BEST
[11:41:55 PM] <him>: I BELIEVE U GUY ARE GOOD IN WEB DESIGNING BETTER
[11:42:21 PM] <him>: I HAVE MY OWNB RECORD ENTERTAINMENT
[11:42:37 PM] <him>: SLY-D RECORDS THAT THE NAME OF THE LABEL
[11:43:27 PM] <him>: IF YOU DO THIS VERY WELL I WILL GIVE YOU THE CONTRACT FOR MY RECORD LEBEL
[11:43:42 PM] <him>: TO DESIGN THE SITE

I am slightly suspicious of his decision to send cash via courier - but is there any safer way to receive payment from someone in Nigeria? Any suggestions where I would have the cash or person checked out to make sure it's not counterfeit or laundered? Thanks for the help.

He's a scammer for sure, it is difficult to see what the scam is but the fact he went from student to entertainer is highly suspect. Why would he want to send money to an unkown Australian web developer when there are plenty of them in Nigeria???

It will be interesting to see what is in the package. Keep us informed if you would.

I suspect you will recieve a fake check and one for much more than $580.

Thanks for the chat log. From the way he writes it's *very* similar to the way scammers approach victims when they do so via chat. The only hint that he might be genuine is that he was the first to mention cash as his method of payment. Not that this means he will definitely send cash or that his money will be real. Still, they usually suggest a cheque or money order since these are easily faked.

Maybe someone else can comment on "safe" methods of receiving cash from Nigeria. An anonymous post office box might be the way to go. As to having your payment checked out, your best bet is to make friends with someone in your local police or fraud squad. In the meantime, avoid giving any personal details to this person.

Like most people have already pointed out you need to be very careful doing business with Nigeria, with the current situation with scams and fraud as it is. The first thing I would ask yourself is if you really need his business. If you can manage without his custom and you are getting plenty of other business from elsewhere, let him find another web designer. Then he's no longer your problem and you can forget about him. If you do want his business, then be very very careful. He might agree to send cash but chances are there will be a last minute development which means he can't and he'll have to send a cheque or give you a dodgy credit card number.

It is interesting however that he offered to send cash. Scammers will normally only offer to pay by the method they intend to scam you and then if you refuse to accept their method they ditch you. I cannot see how they can scam you if they send cash. I know there is the risk the cash could be counterfeit but counterfeit notes are usually very easy to detect. Far easier than fake cheques and since they're not particularly good when it comes to faking cheques, I cannot see them being much good at counterfeiting banknotes. He probably doesn't even know what Austrailian currency looks like let alone how to fake it.

You are right to be careful about giving out your real address. But there is one problem with using a false address, and that is the courier (e.g. UPS) might not hold on to the package. When something is undeliverable, they often just return it to the sender The other thing that might happen is that the package might get misplaced or lost and if its got AU$580 in it you don't want that!

The best way to go would be to register a PO Box and have the package sent there. The main advantage of a PO Box is that you wouldn't have to reveal your real name to your Nigerian client, you could use a made up one. However to set up a PO Box is unnecessary expense for you, and if he doesn't actually sender anything in the end you paid out for a box for nothing.

If you want we can actually help here as we already have a safe address set up, which you are welcome to make use of to safely receieve your package. You can PM me for more information if you'd like to take this route.

If you are concerned about counterfeit notes I can check them out as well. I'm doing a degree in Forensics and I'm currently doing my dissertation in Anaylsis of High Security documents (which covers things like passports and banknotes), so I know what to look out for on banknotes to tell whether or not they are genuine. You don't need to worriws about the money laundering aspect as you'd only be guilty of laundering money if you were receiving money and then sending it back by some other method, like wiring it through Western Union.